Nature – Page 3 – Alpine Shop Blog

December 4, 2009

November and December – great months for sunrise and sunset

Here are some recent pictures of sunrises and a few sunsets across the Ozarks. Be sure to dress warm and dry using layering systems available at the Alpine Shop. You don’t need to get up to early or stay up late to witness these beautiful events and often the moon is quite clear in cold weather compared to hot hazy summer weather. Taken with a Canon 5D MK II and a 1D Full Frame with 200mm f 2.8 lens. Click to enlarge.

August 15, 2009

Missouri’s North Fork of the White River

Missouri and Illinois are home to some of the nicest float streams in the country. Most people from the St. Louis and the Columbia metro areas head south-southwest to the Gasconade, Meramec, Big Piney, Current and Jacks Fork rivers for a day or a weekend of leisurely paddling. There is little doubt that the Current an Jacks Fork are very special streams, and nationally recognized as “scenic”.

If you have not tried it, add a trip to the North Fork of the White River, in far southern Missouri to your future plans. Sections of this river, in my opinion, rank near the top of all Missouri or Arkansas streams for recreational value and for scenery.

The North Fork arises just south of Cabool, Missouri (near Highway 63) and is fed by Indian Creek and numerous springs to make it a beautiful float stream. It enter Norfork lake just north of the Arkansas border. In the springtime, it is floatable from above Missouri Highway 76 downstream; as the spring wears on the highest put-in point is Topaz (an old ghost town with a water mill, 6 miles downstream. Finally by late summer, unless you are interested in wade fishing, Twin Bridges becomes the highest practical put-in point. Even in near drought years the river is even floatable from Rainbow Springs downstream to Dawt Mill, a long one day float.

This river has many Class 2 stretches at the spring water levels; but is fun even in late summer. The bedrock along this stream creates ledges which produce large standing waves (they will enter the canoe or kayak) all summer long. The volume of flow is high and constant due to the large springs. The water is crystal to blueish in color and very cold (due to the influence of the large springs along the way).

Because of the water temperature below Rainbow Springs (aka. Double Springs), the Missouri Department manages a fantastic “Blue Ribbon” trout fishery. Rainbows reproduce naturally in this stream and in great numbers, and frequently reach a length of 22″ or more. In addition, Brown trout are stocked several times per year, and reach weights of up to 15 pounds. If you are planning to fish below the springs, check the regulations.

The upper section of the river is a very good smallmouth bass fishery; with plenty of 20+ inches in length.

The scenery is magnificent to near wilderness from Hammond Camp to Kelly Ford. Black bears are becoming more common in that section. the bird life along this river is phenomenal; with a hundred species of wood warblers, vireos, shorebirds, swallows, and a nice population of nesting Bald eagles.

Spanish Moss hangs from many old cedars on the top of bluffs. Maidenhair ferns cling to the rocks at water level on the same bluff.

If you are planning to camp along the way, gravel bars are nard to find, so begin looking for a suitable location early in the evening. Because of the spring-fed nature of this stream, it is also ideal for wintertime float trips. Call the Alpine Shop for detailed particulars on put-in, take-out points. outfitters, fishing regulations, etc.

You will not be sorry you made the 3 1/2 hour trip to the North Fork.

July 2, 2009

Black Wolf near Yellowstone

This is reported and pictures submitted by a long time Alpine Shop customer, Tom Piotter.

Here is the picture of the Black Wolf that crossed the road and came by our car as we were turning around about 15-20 feet away. We were on our way to the Old Faithful Lodge from the Mammoth Springs Lodge. Most of the Wolf population in Yellowstone is in the Slough Creek area were they were released. This one came out of the small fir trees right were I was standing only minutes before.

Click to enlarge.

June 5, 2009

The Amazing Tanagers

Most of us spend a great deal of time outdoors in the months April-October in Missouri and Illinois. For the most part, we are casual bird-watches (birders). In the Past three years I have gained a profound interest in our beautiful summer migrating birds; especially tanagers and wood warblers.

Two-three weeks ago I spent about some time on the North Fork of the White River in southern Missouri, hiking, flyfishing, and photographing migratory birds. I was astounded at the colors that the tanagers presented. Some were still in their mating season molt, and had multiple combinations of colored feathers; all with some red and yellow. The mature male birds, that had arrived weeks earlier, had the full red feathering. They migrate every spring from South America to Missouri and Illinois and points north to breed.

There are two types of tanagers that breed in Missouri, the Summer Tanager, and the Scarlet Tanager, both primarily red. The females of both species are primarily yellow-orange with some green hues. They nest high up in Oaks and hickories and do not mind Missouri mixed pine forests. They feed primarily on insects, and spend their summer in our tree canopy.

A good pair of binoculars or a spotting scope brings them in close enough to examine. However, in early – mid May they are building nests and come to ground for grass. Usually the female picks up the grass for the nest, and the male stands guard on a low branch or fence, to watch and guard for her.

The Summer Tanager (more common) is so bright and rosy, that red over-saturation is a photography issue; the Scarlet Tanager, which can be identified by his black wings, requires a larger territory (about 5-10 acres for forest), so there a fewer to see. The Summer Tanager requires only about 1 acre of territory.

They are common in Forest Park, Shaw’s Garden, Kirkwood Park, and can be seen just about anywhere there is a grove of trees, in St. Louis. Tanagers are about the size of a cardinal (only slightly smaller). The next time you think you see a cardinal, especially if it is more than ten feet or higher in a tree, look again you might have spotted an immigrant from South America.

If you decide to hike and photograph birds, do not forget to look at the full line of Mountainsmith shoulder bag called the “camera tote” at the Alpine Shop stores in St. Louis and Columbia. You can carry your camera and maybe an extra lens or two, without stashing it on your back. These bags are so easy to use and allow you to quickly draw your camera from your side.

Pictures taken by me with a Canon 5d MK II and a Canon 300 mm f2.8L IS lens with 1.4X teleconverter. Handheld. Click to enlarge.

April 2, 2009

Banff Mountain Film Festival – First Night

I’ve been hosting the Banff Mountain Film Festival for Alpine Shop in St. Louis for quite a few years now and there’s always something amazing each and every time we do this.

A lot of people think we get to see all of the films beforehand and hand pick which ones we think will work best. Well, there’s some truth to that; but the whole truth is a lot more interesting. You see, we get about two minute clips of each of the films. So, you can imagine with a film like Red Gold last night, it’s impossible for us to tell whether or not an hour-long feature film will be any good based on that clip. It’s kind of like a film critic writing reviews based on trailers instead of the actual movie. No, what’s great about Banff is that I’m seeing these films for the first time alongside everybody else. That’s not to say that there isn’t work done by a bunch of people to select which films we think will go over best; but we just never know until the lights go down each year.

The Red Helmet kicked off the show with the tale of a youn,g timid boy coming to grips with his fears after he finds a red helmet in the forest. After experiencing the lives of a number of adrenaline sport athletes (kayaker, climber, mountain biker, etc.) through the helmet, the little man faces his own fears and takes the plunge, literally. Good start to the show.

Papiroflexia (Spanish for origami) was an animated feature. Dealt with the dream to get rid of all the noise and pollution of our lives and get back to nature. Will it be the most popular animated film of the year? We’ll have to wait till tonight to see The Cable Car to find out?

Now for the most controversial topic every year at the Banff Mountain Film Festival… did the feature film live up to your expectations? Red Gold dealt with a proposed mine at the headwaters of two of the largest remaining sockeye salmon runs on the planet near Bristol Bay in Alaska. I’ll just say that I loved the film. The cinematography was gorgeous. The story resonated with me. I know there were people that thought it was too long. But I’d be interested in what some others thought. What did you think of Red Gold? (For conversation’s sake, I think the best feature we’ve ever shown was Alone Across Australia during the 2004 tour.)

The Sharp End: Eastern Europe was hands down the funniest movie of the night. “We don’t drink a lot, a lot. I mean 8-10 beers a day is standard.” That pretty much sums up this group of Checzk climbers’ philosophy. Not that this film was all drunken play. Some of the climbing was pheonmenal. A little humor never hurts, though.

One of the fascinating things about this festival is an almost 50-50 split among our audience as to why they’ve come to the Banff Mountain Film Festival. Half of them come strictly for the adrenaline. The other half are there for the culture and nature. Maybe I’m generalizing that a little much, but I can tell you each year I hear from numerous people after the fact “Why didn’t you show more of this?” or “Why did you pick that?” and it always has to do with the cultural/adrenaline split. So, I wouldn’t be surprised if half of our audience loved Shikashika and half hated it. This was the story of a Peruvian family that climbs into the Andes, hacks enormous blocks of ice from the mountain glaciers and brings them down to the valley on the backs of mules to shave off and sell as snowcones (or as they call it- shikashika). Can you imagine the TroMo kids having to bring down the blocks of ice from the mountains to give Kirkwood it’s snowcone fix? That’s what I kept thinking anyways….

The last two films, Under the Influence and Seasons, both showcased the adrenaline rush with two of the best production groups in the business today. Teton Gravity Research’s Under the Influence had some absolutely unbelieveable powder footage from last year’s massive storm system in Jackson, Wy. Seasons comes from a group called the Collective. Every year that they have a film in the tour, I’ll pick it. They’ve been on the cutting edge with their style in all three films they’ve produced starting in 2004 with their self-titled DVD, The Collective, and continued with ROAM and now Seasons. Their work features some of the most innovative use of zip-line cinematography, super slo-mo and helicopter footage you’ll ever see. So, in the future, just so you know, don’t miss a mountain biking film from the Collective.

So that was night one. Tonight, our feature film is Journey to the Center, and we’ll move from sockeye salmon to BASE jumping. That’s Banff for you. It’s why I love the festival so much and look forward to it all year round.

Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did last night. All of us at Alpine Shop have loved hosting this festival for the past 20 something years and look forward to doing it in the future. Leave a comment on what you liked or hated…

By the way, funniest Banff Mountain Film Festival ever: Xtreme Tramping II: Lord of the Springs.

February 13, 2009

Midwest Outdoor Lovers & Lovers Outdoors

For our first date, my wife and I went on a hike. I guess, looking back, it obviously wasn’t the usual “meet for coffee” or “dinner and a movie” get together; but for us, it seemed to be a perfect fit.

I picked a place neither of us had been before, a small section of the Castor River near Fredericktown, Mo., named the Amidon Conservation Area. From what I had read in Steve Henry’s 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles of St. Louis, Amidon was home to Missouri’s only pink granite shut-ins. It was supposed to be an easy hike and I figured it should make for at least a pleasant first date.

A major storm system earlier in the week had scoured the pink granite walls clean of moss when we visited. The Castor was running clear and fast through the shut-ins and we were both captivated by the place.

Recent pscyhological studies have shown that nature can actively reduce our stress levels. So, maybe it was no mere coincidence that our first date was largely free of any awkward silences or horrible nerves. Instead, our first date was filled with laughter, enjoyment and anticipation of our next hike together. A little over a year later, we were married on that same spot. It has become one of the most cherished locales in our – and our kids’ – lives.

We’ve gone back many many times since that first date, but I don’t think it’s ever been that beautiful again. The pink walls have never been so clean and the water has never been so blue since that first time. I don’t know if that’s just my memory of the place, of that first date; or if that’s the honest to God truth. I guess it really doesn’t matter. It’s still beautiful no matter what time of the year you go. (And so is my wife.)

So get outside this weekend. I highly recommend Steve Henry’s 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles of St. Louis. You can find it at our Alpine Shop locations in St. Louis. And using it, you can find a place that you and your loved one (and ones) can cherish. Find a place to fall in love. It worked for me.